


The Book that Binds

by sweettasteofbitter



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types
Genre: Case Fic, F/F, Pining, Seekers of Truth, Travel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-30
Updated: 2020-08-30
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:26:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25902793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweettasteofbitter/pseuds/sweettasteofbitter
Summary: Cassandra is dispatched to find a rogue Seeker. Little does she know this is the start of a quest to uncover a deep corruption within the Order itself.
Relationships: Cassandra Pentaghast/Original Female Seeker
Comments: 8
Kudos: 12
Collections: Black Emporium 2020





	The Book that Binds

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Corina (CorinaLannister)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CorinaLannister/gifts).



A gust of wind lifted a dense cloud of dust from the unpaved dead end street. The sour stench of someone spewing up their last meal permeated the air; Cassandra hid her nose and mouth in her elbow and looked around, her other hand securely settled on the hilt of her blade. The alleyway was deserted. Two decrepit backdoors gaped at her, like rotten teeth in a gaping, foul-smelling mouth. 

If things went wrong, no one would be around to bear witness. Cassandra hoped it would not have to come to an escalation, for she had been ordered to bring in the suspect alive. If it had been up to her, she would not have been so careful, but she was firmly aware the situation would become more complicated if she went against the Order’s wishes. Besides, another rogue Seeker was the last thing they needed.

Cassandra had never met the fugitive, but the description of her was clear: Linea was a woman in her late twenties, with a pale complexion, long brown hair, and burn scars running across her entire left arm. The search for this woman had brought Cassandra to a part of Markham where most of the streets looked the same, lined with dilapidated, flat-roofed buildings. She squinted to see if she could see any movement inside the houses, but there were barely any windows in the monotonous masonry.

Cassandra surveyed both doors. Neither of them looked particularly inviting, but she decided to take her chances on the one on the left. Planting her feet firmly on the ground, she knocked. A few splinters of the blackened wood crumbled into nothingness underneath her fist.

She counted to twenty. No one answered. She counted another twenty, albeit a little faster than the first time. Still, no response. She was about to turn away from the house and try her luck on the opposite side of the street, when the hinges croaked.

In the doorway stood a hunched figure with greasy grey hair peeking out from under their cloak. They leaned on a walking stick, their face barely distinguishable against the dark shadows behind them. Cassandra suspected the figure was a human woman, although she could not be certain. She bent her neck a little so she could look under the hood, but the secretive face retreated into the cloak.

“My name is Seeker Cassandra Pentaghast,” Cassandra began, pushing out her breast plate so the Seeker emblem was fully visible. Cassandra tried to look past the figure, but she could not make out much from the dark shapes inside the house. “I’m looking for a woman. She is a young human, pale skin, holds herself like a soldier, is known under the name Linea, but is likely to have used an alias.”

“I’m sorry, I’m the only woman who lives here.” The voice creaked, weary with old age. The owner of the voice stepped aside and allowed Cassandra to take a closer look at the house. It was made up of a single room with a bed, a table with two chairs, and a furnace. A few trinkets were scattered around the space. From what Cassandra could see, there were no hidden trap doors, and there was no space under the bed for a human sized body to hide.

“See? No one lives here but me.”

Cassandra caught a flash of eyes from underneath the hood, deep pools of brown, far too young for this woman. Hastily, the figure retreated further into the shadows.

Something felt off, but Cassandra did not want to intrude further on the woman’s privacy. It wouldn’t do to pursue this line of questioning, as Cassandra was unlikely to get any further information out of her. Besides, Cassandra was a representative of the Seekers, and they could not afford many more mistakes. Cracks had already started to appear in the veneer of the organization after minor Templar incidents, and they owed it to themselves to remain trustworthy to the larger public. Attacking an innocent woman in broad daylight would not look kindly on them.

“I’m sorry to have bothered you,” Cassandra said. She turned around, stepping across the threshold.

In the sky, a crow screeched to the heavens.

As the woman’s hand moved to close the door, Cassandra caught a glimpse of scar tissue just hidden underneath her sleeve.

“Stop!” Cassandra shouted, putting her shoulder against the door and pushing with all her might. The door gave way, breaking off its hinges and taking Cassandra with it as it fell to the ground. Cassandra and the door landed on the floor in a haze of dust and wood.

Cassandra’s mishap allowed Linea to put the now exposed, glinting blade at the bottom of her walking stick dangerously close to Cassandra’s throat.

“Don’t move.” Linea’s regular voice had returned. Her chest was heaving. “How did you find me? Was it Rufus? It must have been. I should never have trusted a smuggler. Fuck.”

“I will not answer you.” Cassandra ignored the itch of sand in her airways, terrified as she was to cough with a blade inches away from her larynx. She wondered why Linea did not simply run, but then realized she was blocking her only way out.

“May I remind you of the blade at your throat, Seeker Pentaghast?” Linea scoffed.

Cassandra’s eyes darted across the room, looking for an opportunity to strike, but she knew she was in a beaten position. Her arm, halted halfway to her weapon, went slack.

“The smuggler led us to Markham,” Cassandra brought out. “From there on it was not that difficult to narrow down the possibilities.”

“Right. I suppose it doesn’t matter now. The only question is what I’m going to do with you, because I do not wish to kill you.”

Cassandra swallowed.

“Why not? You have struck down a fellow Seeker before. And you have me beat now.”

Linea shrugged, raising the blade just a bit, but Cassandra could not breathe easier. She didn’t trust Linea not to strike unexpectedly.

“I have only ever hurt those that deserve it. You are merely a messenger. I would gain nothing from your death, and it would aggravate my charges. I am tired of being a fugitive.” Linea sighed. “I bet they didn’t even tell you why I need to survive this encounter, did they?”

“They need you alive so you can be put on trial and atone for what you’ve done. Your immediate death would be too simple a punishment.”

“Is that,” Linea laughed, “is that really what they told you?”

Cassandra frowned. The Seekers would not lie to her about this, and she had seen the lifeless body of Seeker Gabriel in the reading room of the Seekers’ archives. It was all the proof she needed to justify Linea’s arrest.

“It is the truth,” Cassandra said, unfazed. She recognized that she was being toyed with, and she would not allow this woman to get inside her mind.

Linea laughed again, an unnerving sound echoing against the walls of the confined space.

“They can’t even be honest to one of their most trusted senior members.” Linea took a few steps backwards. The blade retracted into the walking stick, and Linea balanced it against the table. Cassandra released a deep, shuddering breath.

“Get up,” Linea ordered. “As much as I like having a woman at my feet, it doesn’t feel right to explain this if we are not standing as equals.”

Cassandra scrambled to her feet. She bent over and finally allowed herself to cough the dust out of her lungs. She was on her guard still, in case Linea changed her mind and attacked a second time.

Once Linea had taken off her hood and was standing up without her feigned hunch, she had something imposing about her. She was only an inch or so shorter than Cassandra, and the cloak hid her impressive shoulders. Had Cassandra been a fresh-faced recruit, she would have been inclined to follow Linea’s command. Cassandra concluded that if Linea hadn’t been a murderer, she would have made a fine figure for the future of the Seekers.

“Then tell me the-” Cassandra refused to bring the word ‘truth’ over her lips. “Tell me what you think I need to know.”

“Well, there is an ancient Tevinter tome in the Seekers’ archive. It is locked with a seal, and the only way to break it is to use the blood of the last descendant of the author’s bloodline,” Linea paused, then let out a sad laugh. “That…would be me?”

Cassandra’s jaw clenched and heat flared up in her limbs. To even suggest that the Seekers would use something akin to blood magic was one of the most ridiculous things Cassandra had ever heard.

“You won’t deceive me, the Seekers do not dabble in _blood magic_ ,” she spat, taking two broad steps into the room and reaching for her sword. “We exist on the very foundation of how much we revile it.”

Linea raised her hands, gesturing that she meant no harm. Cassandra tensed. If she drew her sword on Linea, they would no longer be standing as equals. Cassandra’s fingers flexed over the hilt of her blade, but then she dropped her arm again.

“I don’t expect you to take me for my word. But here,” Linea walked over to the bed, lifted the hay-filled mattress, and pulled out a letter from underneath. “I know it isn’t irrefutable proof, but if this won’t convince you, there is nothing I can say that will.”

She threw the letter across the table, and Cassandra opened it reluctantly. The seal was undeniably that of the Seekers, and Cassandra recognized the handwriting from the investigation she had done into Seeker Gabriel’s work.

_Linea,_

_I know you have your doubts about your donation, but we cannot do this without you. Your efforts will not be in vain. We must succeed so we can build towards a safer and better future for the Seekers together._

_Kindest Regards,_

_Seeker Gabriel Renou_

“‘Donation’ was code for them taking my blood,” Linea said. Her voice sounded hollow. “The tome allegedly contains information that could shake the world to its very core.”

Cassandra stared blankly at the parchment. She was at a loss for words; although the contents of the letter were explicitly vague, in combination with Linea’s claims, they formed a terrifying picture. Surely, this couldn’t be true, because if it was, this was one of the most shocking pieces of information she had ever associated with the Seekers.

“I-” Cassandra clenched her fist. “It is not right, even if it could help us.” She threw the letter on the table. Her pulse throbbed in her throat as rage bubbled up in her chest. “How could you ever agree to this?”

“I bought into their Seeker propaganda at first,” Linea admitted. “‘Together for the good of everyone’, you know how we are. But then I was left to my own thoughts, my own prayers, and my doubts grew. This kind of magic is the reason Andraste fought against the Tevinter Imperium. And what if the ritual maims me, or worse? What if it doesn’t, but they decide they aren’t satisfied after one time?”

Cassandra shook her head.

“I cannot believe the Order allowed this to happen. The Divine-”

Linea cut her off.

“Only a select few people knew, and Seeker Gabriel made sure no one higher up caught wind of what they were doing.” Linea looked at her, eyeing her up and down. “You seem to be a woman of integrity, Cassandra, so you will hate to hear this, but the Order is deeply corrupt.”

Cassandra’s head snapped up at the use of her first name. It was a sharp contrast against the snarky ‘Seeker Pentaghast’ Linea had used earlier.

“I do not trust you, and I find it difficult to believe that all this happened right under my nose, but...” Cassandra sighed, unable to finish her sentence as her thoughts caught up with her tongue. To have something she had revered her whole life be accused of corruption shook her more than she was willing to admit in front of this woman. But she knew instinctively there were layers of truth to it, and this unnerved her quite a bit. “I have seen us close ranks before so that the world would not see what had happened. That we would be corrupt-” She shook her head. “I had hoped I would not have to see this day.”

“You know the Seekers can be better than this,” Linea said. “We could expose Seeker Gabriel’s cohorts, so no one ever has to be subjected to this again. I could clear my name and in the very least claim it was self-defense, because I would hate to be on the run from the Order for the rest of my life.”

“Are you expecting me to work with you?” Cassandra raised her eyebrows. Believing that there might be some truth to Linea’s story was no reason to trust her.

Linea nodded a little too enthusiastically. “If you helped me, I would be forever indebted to you.”

“But I do not know you, and you do not know me,” Cassandra protested. “I have no reason to trust you, yet you seem very eager for my cooperation.”

“Perhaps it is for the best if we only have a common cause to work towards, without being bogged down by a personal history, don’t you think? Apart from that time you tried to arrest me and I threatened to slice your throat and everything.” She raised her eyebrow and curled the corner of her lips. “We will have to forgive each other for that.”

Cassandra milled the thought over in her head. If she was turning her back to a chance to unveil a nefarious plot, it could ruin everything she had built. She could not stand the idea of standing idly by as the Order crumbled. If there was ever a time to set things right, it was now.

She picked up the letter once more.

“Are you willing to travel back to Val Royeaux and face the Seekers, even knowing what might be awaiting you there?”

“Yes,” Linea said. “I must set this right.” She rubbed her heel with her other foot and looked at the ground, then defiantly back up again. “If I attack you, or even give you the idea that I’m doing you harm in any shape or form, you have my permission to strike me down.”

“I will,” Cassandra said coolly. “Don’t worry.”

“Good. Let me gather my things and wear something more comfortable so we can leave.”

Cassandra sent word ahead to the rest of the Seekers, informing them that she had been successful in her search and that she and her charge would return to Orlais as soon as possible. It would still take another week before the headquarters in Val Royeaux would be notified, and Cassandra estimated their homebound journey would take at least a month if the weather was generous and the roads were safe.

They agreed that, if they were to enter a town, Linea would act as Cassandra’s prisoner. Linea willingly let herself be tied up and Cassandra led her through Markham until they reached the city gates. They made sure people saw what was going on, and as they paraded through the streets, people nudged each other and the first rumors were already spreading. It felt strange to be on this side of the lie.

Cassandra returned to the farmer she had left her horse with, and arranged a second horse to be saddled. No questions were asked. Once they were out of range and only accompanied by meadows and the occasional traveling merchant, Cassandra cut Linea’s ties.

In the natural hues of the clouded afternoon, Cassandra could take a better look at her. The description of the Seekers had not told Cassandra that Linea had a dusting of freckles on her nose, or a mole on her neck just below her right ear. Her greasy hair was dyed a drab grey to conceal her natural color, and she had small rings in her ears, four on each side. She would not stand out in a crowd, but up close it was far too easy to be drawn in by her deep brown eyes. They carried a warm but commanding boldness that Cassandra had seldom seen.

Linea stretched and wiggled her fingers to facilitate the blood flow before getting on her horse. Together, they set off on their journey.

They progressed considerably on their first two days, with only their horses’ hooves and the song of birds to keep them company. Linea appeared in deep thought most of the time and would not share anything that was happening inside her head.

“I promise I’m not usually this quiet,” she said, startling Cassandra with her voice. The sun was setting behind the pines and they would have to make camp soon. “I have a lot on my mind.”

“At least you are not saying anything untoward,” Cassandra said.

Linea smirked. “You think so highly of me.”

“On the contrary, I do not know what to think of you,” Cassandra replied. “I thought that was the entire point of this.”

“You will form an opinion of me, for better or for worse. Opinionated lot, us Seekers.”

Cassandra did not respond, although she had to admit that there was some truth to this claim.

On the third day, they came upon a river. Linea slowed down her horse, and gestured at the water flowing calmly past mossy rocks.

“If you don’t mind, we could stop here. I haven’t taken a bath in ages.”

Cassandra looked at the stream. It was very tempting to take a break; they could let the horses rest and refill their water skins.

“All right. I have no objections, as long as it does not take up too much time.”

Linea slid off her horse and tied it to a nearby tree near a patch of tall grass. Her walking stick, now revealed to be a weapon rather than a disguise, dangled from her belt and swayed with every step. With quick fingers she started undoing the clasps of her gambeson and her shirt. It didn’t seem to bother her that Cassandra was standing there. After all, much of Seeker life was spent in shared barracks with very little privacy, and you eventually grew used to it. 

As a Seeker you had also learned not to stare, because comparing yourself to others or accidentally finding yourself attracted to them were two sour sides of the same coin. It was a lesson Cassandra had temporarily forgotten as she went to tie up her own horse. When she looked up, she was faced with Linea’s broad shoulders and the scarred arm that had betrayed her. Linea’s braid whipped across her shoulder as she turned around, piling up her clothes on a rock. Cassandra averted her eyes.

“Oh come on, Cassandra,” Linea laughed, lifting her arms above her head and stretching some muscles. “You’re not squeamish about breasts are you?”

“Of course not,” Cassandra replied curtly, heat creeping up her neck. She definitely had not had a very vivid physical response to seeing the other woman’s half-naked body. Soft belly, firm breasts.

Andraste, _preserve_ her.

Cassandra turned around and followed the path up the hill, trying desperately to think of other things. Despite the steep incline, it felt good to stretch her legs and let the blood flow. She took a deep breath, allowing the fresh air to fill her lungs. A little further down the path she watched quietly as a rabbit jumped into the underbrush.

In the distance, the peaks of the Vimmark Mountains stretched beyond the woods. They had yet to brave the mountain range, but Cassandra preferred it to the alternative of entering Kirkwall and boarding a ship. 

She walked a bit further, until the branches of the trees were so tightly packed together barely any sunlight came through. Knowing it was a bad idea to continue further, she turned around and made her way back to their horses.

Linea was fully dressed, and once she was done tying her wet hair into a braid and restocked their water supply, they resumed their travels. Conversation flowed easier and they no longer spent their time on horseback in complete silence; the ice seemed to have broken.

Linea had the tendency to laugh a lot. When she shared the abundance of blueberries she had found, she almost doubled over with laughter as Cassandra’s tongue turned purple. Cassandra initially believed her boisterous charm to be mere pretense, because whenever they spoke about their mission, Linea showed scarcely a smile and was analytical and to-the-point. She spoke passionately about the Seekers, and clearly cared deeply for their cause. Cassandra started to realize that these personality traits were not mutually exclusive, and that the commanding stature that had towered over her in a Markham hovel was not a mask either **.**

If humor had been the only thing Linea had to offer, Cassandra might not have appreciated her as much. But to Cassandra’s surprise, Linea was growing on her. If they couldn’t form a friendship due to circumstances, then it was definitely a growing companionship of two people stuck in a situation together. 

It was difficult not to drop her guard around Linea. Still, she chided herself every time she did so; she could not afford to. There were moments where Cassandra thought she was being watched behind her back, and given the circumstances she wasn’t certain whether to feel apprehensive or appreciative. She was more inclined towards the former.

And yet there was some small part of her, stowed safely away for now, that wished she could shrug off her suspicion and replace it with something more comforting.

“Something is bothering me,” Cassandra began. It had been on her mind ever since she agreed to take on this adventure, and she had been unable to let it go.

Linea nodded, giving Cassandra her undivided attention. Their horses trod tirelessly onward.

“Why was I ordered to keep you alive? The command came from higher up, and you said Seeker Gabriel meant to keep this ordeal under wraps.”

“I honestly wouldn’t be able to tell you, but I doubt it is a coincidence.” Linea shrugged. “I’m fairly certain they need the donor to be alive, so perhaps they were convinced by someone who collaborated with Gabriel? He had a few people working for him. His apprentice, Joni, was one of them, although I am afraid he was roped into this in the same way I was. Gabriel could be deceivingly charming.”

“I only met Gabriel a handful of times,” Cassandra said. “I would not have suspected him of any of this. He seemed like a fine man.”

“A deceitful man, you mean. His ability to convince you of the righteousness of his behavior is why people like him get away with their actions,” Linea bit out through her teeth, and she turned her eyes back on the road, poignantly avoiding Cassandra’s gaze.

“You are right,” Cassandra acknowledged. “I should not have said that.”

Their silence returned, and it allowed Cassandra to look at the grey clouds that packed together above their heads. As she looked up, the first drop of rain fell on her cheek.

The rain soon grew from a few drops into a curtain of water that engulfed them from head to toe. Raindrops clung from Cassandra’s eyelashes, and she wiped the droplets from her forehead. There wasn’t a dry patch of clothing left on her person. Their horses snorted and shivered. After a few hours in the downpour no one was in a cheerful mood and the cold had crept into their bones. 

Linea suggested making camp under fir trees in tightly packed woodlands. Water seeped through the opening of their tent, and around them was only damp muck, which settled in their bedrolls.

“Maker’s balls, this might be the wettest I have ever been,” Linea grumbled. She halted in her movements, considering her manner of phrasing and glaring at Cassandra from the corner of her eye. “I will refrain from commenting on the competence of my ex-lovers here.”

Cassandra coughed, trying her best not to think about _that._ She laid out some clothes by means of distraction, but it was no use; the water was everywhere.

“I’ve been thinking of cutting my hair,” Linea said, trying to squeeze some of the moisture out of her braid and hitting the canvas with her elbow. “Maybe I want it as short as yours, but I’m scared of the maintenance. Right now I don’t need haircuts, I just braid my hair so I don’t have to look at it for a few days.”

“Your hair suits you,” Cassandra said, taken aback by the subsequent heat that spread across her face. Yes, she had looked at Linea’s hair tumbling down her shoulders a couple of times, but why did her own words cause this unexpected buzz in her chest now?

“Why, thank you, I grew it myself.” Linea smirked.

Cassandra groaned. This only made Linea laugh harder, and Cassandra swore she could feel the rumble of it in her bones. Cassandra bit the inside of her cheek until she could no longer deny it: she had grown fond of Linea’s presence, and although she could not trace back when exactly that had happened, it did not matter.

When Linea tucked a damp strand of hair behind her ear, Cassandra noticed the dirt under her fingernails. Cassandra didn’t understand why Linea made her focus on details, on the wrinkles of joy in the corners of her eyes, or the frown in between her eyebrows whenever she was lost in deep thought.

They soldiered on, but rain seemed to have no end to it. Near dusk, they came upon an abandoned barn, with foul-smelling hay lining the floor and water dripping through the holes in the ceiling. There was a spot large enough for a person and a half to sleep in. Cassandra dried off the horses as well as she could and made sure they were fed properly, while Linea hung up some of their dripping belongings on a makeshift clothesline. She sighed every now and then, closing her eyes and pinching the bridge of her nose before moving on.

Linea sneezed. One of the horses neighed and scraped their hooves nervously.

“I’m sorry,” she said, sitting down in the hay, putting her head in her hands. “To be honest with you, I’m not feeling great.”

Cassandra sat down next to her and handed her some of their rations.

“You should eat something, then sleep.”

Linea swallowed down some hardtack. She sneezed again, sending crumbs flying halfway across the barn. Shivering, she hugged her arms around herself, rocking back and forth.

“This fucking weather. I’m so cold.”

Cassandra raised her eyebrows. Even though they were not touching, she could feel the heat radiating off Linea’s body.

Night fell around them. Linea shivered and curled up in her bedroll. Cassandra, too, laid back and closed her eyes, hoping to fall asleep quickly. Next to her, Linea was twisting and turning, and because they had so little space she bumped into Cassandra a couple of times.

The warmth of Linea’s fever was palpable now they were so close. Cassandra would have appreciated the shared heat if it hadn’t made her long to put her hand on Linea’s hip and protect her, soothe her, hold her. Drops of want trickled into the cup and flowed over the edge, and the sudden palpable desire made Cassandra shift in the darkness. She frowned: this absolutely wasn’t the time to realize she had these feelings for her companion. 

Cassandra turned her back to Linea, wishing to subdue the thumping in her chest. She focused on her breathing, and used her tired limbs as an argument to persuade her mind to calm down. Finally, she managed to fall asleep.

When dawn came creeping both of them were worse for wear, but Linea had taken the brunt of the blow. She insisted on carrying on, even though she was supporting herself against the woodwork whenever she thought Cassandra wasn’t looking. The only small mercy was that the sun had appeared in the sky again.

They didn’t make it very far until Linea started lagging behind. Cassandra wasn’t certain if she was swaying because she was falling asleep or because she was dizzy. Cassandra made the decision for them; they simply couldn’t continue like this. When they reached a hamlet that consisted of three farms surrounded by a colorful patchwork of farmland, she knocked on the first door she saw. To Cassandra’s surprise, the person who opened was a young Vashoth woman with a soft voice and kind eyes.

“What’s wrong?” She asked, looking at Linea, who was leaning against the wall of the house with her eyes squeezed shut. “Is she wounded?”

Cassandra shook her head. She didn’t have the heart to pretend Linea was her captive.

“It might be a bad cold. She developed a fever and almost fell off her horse.”

“I see. Have you been traveling for long?”

“A few weeks,” Cassandra answered truthfully, as she saw no reason to lie about this. The Vashoth nodded.

“She must be exhausted. If she has enough rest, she should be all right after a few days.”

 _“We don’t have that long,”_ Cassandra wanted to say.

“Is there anywhere she can stay for the time being?” She asked, instead.

“I’m afraid we do not have an inn or anything of the sort.” The Vashoth wrung her hands together and looked around. “She could stay in our shed. It isn’t much but it is dry, and I can provide some blankets so she is comfortable. Do you wish to stay with her?”

Cassandra questioned this stranger’s generosity, but she didn’t have the choice to reject the offer. Linea _had_ to recover. Cassandra didn’t bring her all the way here to have it go wrong now. The shed would have to do.

“Yes.” Cassandra looked at Linea, then back at the vashoth. Heat crept up her neck, afraid she was giving this woman the wrong impression with her flushed face. “I do.”

“Hey.” Linea grimaced, upper lip doused in sweat. ”Is no one going to ask me what I want?”

“No,” Cassandra said.

She spent the next few nights next to Linea, not sleeping much herself, and watching Linea twist and turn in her sleep. Cassandra took no joy in seeing her this way. More than once, Linea started awake from her sweat-drenched fever dreams. 

“Where am I?” She would ask, damp palms gripping Cassandra’s shirt.

“You are here, and you are safe,” Cassandra would say, time and time again, until she had pried Linea’s hands from her shoulders, face way too close to hers for comfort. This was not the time to think about caressing her cheek, or pressing her mouth to hers. The timing of it all left a sour taste in her mouth.

The wait was absolutely tedious. Cassandra could do little else than stretch her legs during the day or watch the farmers in the fields. At least they were offered fresh apples from one of the nearby orchards, and their horses were rested enough so they could make the second leg of their journey. After three nights, the fever died down and Linea was no longer delirious. It did not take long before she was up and walking again. She looked longingly at the road, and after another day they said their goodbyes.

Despite the hiccups on their route, they approached Cumberland earlier than Cassandra had expected, or perhaps prepared herself for. They had to be careful around here, for the road was more densely populated with merchants and other folk that moved about. For Linea’s own safety, Cassandra tied her up, letting her ride her horse behind her with her hands bound and her head bowed in shame. She played the part quite well, but this also meant they couldn’t move as fast.

Cassandra never enjoyed setting foot in Nevarra. Even though not many people knew who she was, without exception, she was instantly recognized as Nevarran whenever she opened her mouth.

“I didn’t realize you were a local,” Linea said, when the road was quiet and the wind was still. “I wasn’t sure where your accent was from.”

“I come from Nevarra originally, yes.”

“Why did you leave?”

“It is a long story, and at the end of it, there was nothing left for me here,” Cassandra said. She did not feel like talking about her upbringing. It was none of Linea’s business.

“I see. I hope you feel more at peace elsewhere, at least.”

Even though Cassandra wasn’t looking at her, she could hear a semblance of care in Linea’s voice. Cassandra stared straight ahead, unable to deny the soft stutter in her stomach.

“Occasionally, but there is always work to be done,” Cassandra said. “These days, home is wherever I sleep.”

“I understand. I preferred my home with the Seekers.” Linea hung her head. “Even though I suspect they won’t have me now.”

They set up camp near the Orlesian border. At the fireside, Linea was enraptured by the flames while Gabriel’s letter lay next to her on the tree trunk. Whenever Cassandra sought Linea’s eyes, they shared a brief moment of understanding, but Linea looked away quickly every time. Cassandra couldn’t blame her for her nerves. After all, they were getting closer to the Seeker’s headquarters, and neither of them knew what was awaiting them there.

The shadows of the fire softened Linea’s features, and Cassandra’s fingers itched to reach out and touch the line between light and shadow on the curve of her cheek. She closed her eyes briefly and tried to steady her breath; her resolve was weakened, undeniably so. The small bits and pieces of tenderness had been stacking up, until Cassandra could no longer deny them. Sometimes, when Cassandra caught Linea smiling or humming to herself, the ground threatened to fall out from underneath her. And whenever Linea’s fingers toyed with the rings in her ear, a fire roared within Cassandra which she had never explored before. Cassandra had not had much companionship in years and she was not used to the intensity of these feelings as they reared up their ugly head.

Linea was using her cane to draw lines in the coarse soil. After a while, she leaned back and wiped her hands on her lap.

“So I’m aware my curiosity is a touch morbid, but was there a point at which you would have preferred to kill me?”

Cassandra snorted, surprised by the question as she was.

“I suppose I was tempted when we first met. After the wild goose chase you led me on, I am not certain I had the patience to handle that confrontation without bloodshed,” Cassandra said in all honesty. “But now? You have not given me reason to.”

“That’s a relief, because I do remember the promise you made, so I’d rather stay on your good side.”

Cassandra hoped so too. The promise weighed heavier and heavier on her shoulders. She would have to accept that this was still something that lay ahead of her. There was a chance she would have to make the call, but she was uncertain if she could even lay a hand on Linea at this point. 

Her hand curled into a fist. She had thought herself to be stronger than this, but she loathed how she had allowed Linea to get inside her mind. Linea had managed to pull away the layers of protection she had so carefully built up. If anything, she was disappointed. Disappointed, and infatuated.

But Cassandra knew one thing for certain, and that was that she would not allow her personal feelings to jeopardize a mission.

As though Linea had been reading her mind, she cleared her throat.

“And, Cassandra, I’m not sure if this is out of line, but…” She did not look Cassandra in the eye this time, and touched the end of her braid, as she had been doing more frequently over the past few days. “I can tell when a woman is interested in me.”

Cassandra’s heart jumped in her throat. Had she truly been that obvious? She braced herself for the judgment and inevitable rejection. She dug her heels in the sand, lest she betrayed herself.

“I apologize,” she said quickly, before the hurt could set in. She swallowed. “I will get over it.”

Linea suddenly found her dirty fingernails far more interesting than Cassandra.

“I’m, uhm, not unappreciative,” Linea said. “But perhaps we should focus on what lies ahead of us. If I die, you’re left behind to clean up my mess. You deserve better than that.”

“Returning to Val Royeaux is what matters now,” Cassandra said, crossing her arms, and that was that. Biting away the disappointment, she looked at what lay in front of them.

“They will arrest me as soon as I show myself. I’m not sure if we even have enough evidence.” Linea rubbed her hands over her face. “It is my word against a dead man’s. Why am I even doing this? I’m done for.” She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. “I’m so screwed.”

Cassandra was not so easily deterred. Admittedly, it wasn’t her life on the line, which allowed her to look at it from a different perspective.

“I will find a way to conduct more research,” she promised, trying to comfort Linea. “There has to be something that marks as proof of the collaboration with other Seekers.”

If, indeed, there was proof. But if it existed, Cassandra would find it.

Linea became more withdrawn. She started asking for more frequent breaks during which she would pace up and down the road and bite her fingernails. But even their delays could not postpone the inevitable, as the spires and domes of Val Royeaux loomed over the horizon.

The blue roofs of Val Royeaux stood tall and proud. Chantry bells rang as they stepped through the eastern gate, exposing them to the gossip and wagging tongues of the onlookers in the streets. Perhaps a few market stalls had switched around, and different birds had flocked to the grand fountains, but the rumors and shadows of Val Royeaux had not changed.

Tied wrists in font, Linea was led to the Seekers. She had been right in her predictions: once they saw as much as a glimpse of her, they apprehended her and took her inside.

“It is good to see you have returned successfully, Seeker Cassandra.”

“It was my duty.” Cassandra said with a curt nod. “That said, Seeker Linea came with me of her own volition.”

The Seekers looked at each other.

“This might mean she is up to something.”

Cassandra sighed. “I would not be surprised if that was the case. She has tried quite hard to make me believe there is more at play here than we can see.” 

Talking about Linea behind her back made Cassandra’s neck tingle; it felt unjust, as though she was spreading malign gossip.

“Perhaps we should listen to what she has to say,” Cassandra said. “I will take full responsibility if it turns out she’s making everything up.”

Cassandra walked familiar halls and greeted familiar faces as she set out to gather evidence.

It wasn’t uncommon for the Order to leave senior Seekers’ rooms as they were until it was decided who would take their place. Even senior members of the Order had confined spaces, but at least they were allotted shelves for their books and other belongings. 

Cassandra opened the door to Seeker Gabriel’s room, which was small but furnished comfortably. Dust motes danced in the ray of light that came through the window. Rugs lined the floor and the wilted remains of a plant drooped from a pot in the corner. Nothing in sight that would raise eyebrows.

Cassandra began with the most obvious hiding places. She peeked under the mattress and inside the alphabetically ordered books, including several volumes of the Randy Dowager, but couldn’t find anything out of the ordinary. She checked for hidden compartments in small chests filled with trinkets, but there was nothing to be found. Just as she was about to get frustrated she remembered a hiding spot she had seen in the White Spire once: a senior enchanter who had hidden liquor filled candy in one of his bed posts. She knocked against the frame of the bed and squinted; it sounded hollow. She unscrewed the decorative knob at the top of the bed frame and reached inside. Triumphantly, she retrieved Gabriel’s notes.

She spent some time in a secluded corner of the courtyard studying Gabriel’s personal writing, and as she leafed through the pages she quickly realized this could become one of the Order’s darkest secrets if she did not act quickly. With every word she read, it became clearer that Linea had been right all along. Gabriel’s writings went back decades, studies of the tome and maps of tracking down Linea’s bloodline. The truth regarding Linea was even more painful than Cassandra could have imagined, because Seeker Gabriel Renou carried out the order for staging the house fire accident that killed Linea’s parents. Cassandra’s head throbbed with her seething rage. In his notes, Gabriel expressed fostering a deep regret, but Cassandra had nothing but hatred left for this man she once admired.

More importantly for the immediate situation, there were clear passages in the notes that stated there was someone very high up in the Order who had helped Gabriel. Unfortunately, no names had been mentioned, but this was the proof Cassandra had been hoping to find.

She rose to her feet. Linea deserved to know this.

With steady feet, Cassandra hurried down to the holding cells where moisture dripped from the low ceilings. In the dimly lit hallways, several of the floorboards had been damaged by the shuffling of boots and the occasional scrap between prisoner and guards. The small windows, protected by iron bars, barely allowed for any sunlight to reach this floor.

Cassandra lifted her chin as she spoke to the guard standing outside Linea’s cell.

“I have permission to speak to the prisoner,” Cassandra said. It was a white lie. She had not requested permission, but she was granted privileges due to her status, and no one would bat an eye if she visited this part of the building.

“You get ten minutes, and not a minute more.”

Cassandra nodded and stepped into the cell. Linea was hunched over, sitting on the cold hard floor, her wrists bound together. Her hair tie had been taken away from her, and the waves of her hair fell loosely around her shoulders. Even though it made Cassandra’s heart pound painfully against her ribcage to see her in this vulnerable position, Cassandra looked down at her until the guard left them. When his footsteps had disappeared down the hallway, Cassandra’s face softened and she uncrossed her arms.

“I found something of interest,” she said quietly, getting down on her knees to show Linea what she had found. “Someone higher up was aware of this whole operation, but no names are mentioned in the notes.”

Linea scanned the pages, her frown deepening with every word. “Shit, no wonder he kept these private.”

“Do you believe me now?”

“I do,” Cassandra said, bowing her head. “I’m sorry I did not do so sooner, and I’m deeply regretful for what Gabriel did to you. It is difficult to believe.”

“On the contrary, my entire life makes sense now. He recruited me as a child just so I could be a vessel. My whole life has been dictated by this; it was a plan twenty years in the making.” Linea hugged her knees to her chest. “I hate him so much. And yet I feel bad for what I did to him.”

A knot twisted in Cassandra’s gut. She did not approve of the choice Linea had made, but given her history with Seeker Gabriel, Cassandra couldn’t help but feel sympathetic. Linea deserved better than this, and Cassandra would do anything to expose the Seekers that had done this to her.

“I don’t think you are a bad person,” she said, touching Linea’s shoulder. “I cannot claim to condone your actions, but I understand your motivations. Had I been in the same position, I might have done the same.”

Linea looked up at her with her doe-brown eyes. 

“Thank you,” she whispered. “You don’t know how much that means to me.”

Cassandra’s stomach clenched at the tone of her voice. She craved to let Linea know she would support her, now that there was no denying the truth.

Her heart beat rapidly in her chest as she bent forward, took Linea’s head in her hands, and pressed her mouth against her forehead. Beneath her, she heard Linea’s sharp exhale. They breathed together for a few moments. Slowly, they parted, eyes closed.

Cassandra scrambled to her feet and let the guard know she was done.

The tears that spilled over Linea’s cheeks only added to convincing the guard that whatever had happened during this conversation, it hadn’t been pleasant.

Cassandra strode out of the cell, unable to look at Linea’s tear-stained countenance any longer. She moved through those same old hallways that seemed so devoid of warmth now, as though Cassandra was a stranger to their marble walls. Her fingers itched to expose this secret that was bigger than the both of them.

Not long after, it was time for Linea to face her charges. She was led to the main hall, where the proceedings were led by Seeker Morris, a pasty, balding man in his fifties.

“Bring forth the suspect.”

Linea was pushed into the circle of onlookers that had gathered, most of them wearing their Seeker regalia for the occasion. Among the members of the jury were many familiar faces and many others Cassandra had never seen before. Before anyone else could say anything, Cassandra stepped forward. Heads turned towards her, but their scrutiny did not faze her. If anything, it made her more confident.

“Stop,” she said, her voice loud and clear. “I have newfound information that we should prioritize.”

“Are you here to claim the defendant did not murder Seeker Gabriel?”

“No,” Cassandra said, shaking her head. “She fully admits to her deed.”

“Then why are you wasting everyone’s time?” Seeker Morris raised his eyebrows.

“While what Seeker Linea did was gruesome, after my investigation I can no longer claim that it was unjust.”

“What do you mean?”

“I have evidence that proves Seeker Gabriel Renou was working on something that involved blood magic, and not only were others within our organization looking away while it was happening, they even facilitated the process.”

A rumble went through the crowd. One woman with black curls gasped audibly.

“Preposterous,” Seeker Morris spat. “I expected better from you, fabricating tales and speaking ill of the dead. Why would you come to a murderer’s aid like this?”

“Because it is the truth. I have proof that-”

“Are you not ashamed of how easily this woman got to you?” Seeker Morris raised his eyebrows. “When we sent you, we had hoped she would not wrap you around your finger, as she has many others. Unfortunately, it seems even one of our best was not immune.”

Everyone turned to Cassandra. Linea shook her head. “No, that is not- he’s lying, Cassandra.”

“Would it be so difficult to believe that the fugitive you spent a month around has been lying to you and corrupted your mind?”

Cassandra looked from Linea to Seeker Morris. She bit the inside of her cheek, surveying the situation. Was she being double-crossed here?

Whispers rose around them, this time at Cassandra’s expense.

“Seeker Gabriel-” Linea was cut off. Seeker Morris turned to her swiftly.

“How dare you speak his name! You murdered him! You escaped and manipulated a Seeker so she would come to your defense!”

Even though the crowd did not move, it seemed to be closing in on them. Cassandra felt sweat dampen her armpits, her eyes and ears on high alert in case the people around them decided to turn on them.

“No, no, no, that is not what-” Again, Linea did not get to speak.

“Make sure she keeps her mouth shut,” Morris barked. “And keep Seeker Pentaghast away from her so she cannot be influenced any further.”

Linea ran forward, yanked back by the Seeker behind her. Her hair fell around her face.

“Cassandra, remember the promise you made? It’s my fault you’re in this situation. Your reputation is at stake and I’m hurting you.” Linea was desperate now, her voice shaking around the syllables of Cassandra’s name. She swallowed, and a cold chill ran down Cassandra’s spine. “ _Kill me_.”

Linea’s eyes were asking her, no, _pleading_ , to put an end to this.

Cassandra blinked. What was Linea trying to achieve? Would she really rather die than be tried? If she had still hope left of a more positive outcome, surely she wouldn’t be so desperate to die?

“You promised me you would do this!” 

Linea was right. Cassandra _had_ made her this promise, and as much as she cared, as much as she _craved_ , her sense of honor pushed her over the line.

With the blood ringing in her ears, Cassandra drew her sword and held it at Linea’s throat. Towering over her, Cassandra’s body moved on its own accord. Her mind was screaming that she couldn’t stand losing Linea. She tried to stand tall, but her shaking hands were betraying her.

“Cassandra,” a voice echoed from the top of the stairs. “That is quite enough. Step down.”

Cassandra’s head whipped around. Many others in the crowd followed her example.

“Lord Seeker?” Cassandra lowered her weapon.

She looked at Linea. The look of fear and understanding they shared was all Cassandra needed. The puzzle pieces fell in place.

If Linea died, the tome would go to waste. Only someone who was aware of the ritual would want to prevent Linea’s death. Even if this person pretended to be unfazed while sauntering down the stairs. Even if this person bore the highest ranking title within the Seekers of Truth.

Cassandra knew they would never be able to prove that the Lord Seeker had been involved, because no names had been mentioned. She wanted to launch herself at him, but was able to hold herself back. Attacking the Lord Seeker in broad daylight, with dozens of fellow ignorant Seekers as witness, was not the brightest idea she had ever had. She made the vow right there and then that she would not rest until she had ousted him and his betrayal. The first step to achieve that would be to make those present aware of what had been going on behind closed doors.

“Your evidence of blood magic in the Order.” Cassandra put the notes on the table and slammed her hand on top of the pile. “Read Gabriel’s notes,” she snarled. “ _Now_.”

Seeker Morris leafed through the pages cautiously. His eyes grew wide as he processed the information.

“This could be fabricated, Gabriel’s handwriting could have been faked-”

“It isn’t.”

A voice came from the back of the room. Cassandra craned her neck, but she could not make out who it belonged to. All heads turned in the direction of the voice. The crowd parted as a young man stepped forward, deep dark eyes and brown freckled skin.

“Joni?” Seeker Morris frowned.

“Everything they claim – it’s true. I would know, because I worked for Gabriel,” Joni said, rubbing the back of his neck. “I am done living with this secret. I had my own doubts for a while, and Gabriel’s death merely cemented what I already suspected.”

“So this is real?” Seeker Morris asked, still eyeing the notes suspiciously.

Cassandra threw her hands up in the air, infuriated with the pace of which all of this was happening. 

“Yes, it is. History is doomed to repeat itself if we keep closing ranks.” Cassandra squinted, scanning the room. She caught the Lord Seeker’s gaze and stared him down until he looked away. “We owe it to ourselves and the public to learn from this, and perhaps it would look well on us if you reconsidered Linea’s role in all this.”

Seeker Morris took a step backwards and looked at the other senior members present.

“We will take a moment to discuss these findings. Keep the suspect in chains for the time being.”

The jury, including the Lord Seeker, retreated from the hall. They left behind whispers that expanded into a loud buzz. The partakers in the crowd leaned together, speaking words and whispers behind their hands.

“Blood magic? In the Order? Unbelievable,” one of them said.

“I want to read those notes for myself, I find it so hard to believe otherwise,” another responded.

The meeting lasted far too long for Cassandra’s liking. She paced back and forth across the tiles, watching the light that fell through the tall windows change as the sun moved towards the horizon. Eventually, they reconvened. When everyone had gathered in the hall, Seeker Morris cleared his throat. To Cassandra’s relief, Linea’s wrists were freed from the stocks.

“Due to the extraordinary circumstances of this case, we will not press further charges.” Murmurs went through the crowd. “But Seeker Linea will be discharged indefinitely.”

“What?” Linea’s head snapped up at him, eyes flaring. “Where am I supposed to go? The Seekers practically raised me, and now I’m being sent away?”

Morris raised his eyebrows. “We could reconsider our sentence, if you’d rather?”

Linea’s shoulders sagged. “I suppose not.”

The hall emptied. People started moving around Linea and Cassandra lost sight of her for a moment. Eventually, Linea slipped through the large doors that led to the courtyard, and Cassandra decided to follow her. 

Linea looked to and fro, at the sky, at the people continuing with their lives as it had before. Cassandra saw Joni approaching her sheepishly and putting a hand on her arm. An unexpected jealousy filled Cassandra. She wanted this, she realized, that casual touch, that gesture of familiarity. She wanted to be allowed to touch Linea in public to show her support, her love.

Joni left the courtyard. Cassandra approached Linea, embracing the syrupy warmth in her limbs at the sight of Linea’s freckly skin in the orange hues of the sunset. She wanted to make her feelings known to her, especially since she knew they were likely to be reciprocated. The mere idea made Cassandra walk quicker, hiding her hands behind her back in case she would fidget.

“I got a little souvenir,” Linea said, gesturing at the book in her hands.

“The tome? How did you acquire this?”

“Joni may or may not have felt remorse for what he and his teacher got up to. It was his way of making up to me.” Linea showed the front of the tome. It was smaller than Cassandra had imagined. “I’m not entirely certain what to do with this, or how happy the Order will be when they find out one of their most dangerous pieces has gone missing. I’m fairly certain the pages will crumble if anyone else but the heir of the bloodline tries to reveal them.”

“Allow me,” Cassandra said. Linea turned over the tome in her hands, then handed it to Cassandra.

Cassandra took a dagger from her belt. Ignoring Linea’s gasp, she threw the tome to the ground and dropped on her knees. Placing one hand on the book to keep it in place, she wriggled and pried the lock open. She turned the cover, and did not get the chance to read even a single word. Within moments, the pages started shriveling up at the edges. A strange sensation bubbled up in Cassandra’s stomach, a dark anxiety soared through her veins. She wanted to look at Linea, and find an anchor in her, but she couldn’t move. And just as sudden as the feeling had appeared, it sank back into the depths it came from. The book had turned to dust before their eyes, blown away by the wind. The ancient wisdoms ascended to the sky, never to be reclaimed.

Cassandra closed her eyes. Breathed out. Opened her eyes.

“It is done,” she said, rising to her feet. “No one should have this power.”

Linea was staring blankly at the neatly decorated cover, which was all that remained of the tome.

“You didn’t have to do that,” she said quietly. “What if it turns out to be a waste?”

“We will never know,” Cassandra said. “It wasn’t fair for your life to be dictated by a book. You deserve to decide your own purpose in life.”

Linea gauged Cassandra, took her in from head to toe. Cassandra cursed the jitter in her belly caused by the intensity of those _damned_ brown eyes.

“You really did this for me, didn’t you?”

The tips of Cassandra’s ears grew bright red.

“I had hoped it would help you to move forward.”

Linea chewed her lip.

“I’m not certain what I’m supposed to be, now that I’m no longer a Seeker. I’ve always wanted to mean _something_. Perhaps Gabriel saw right through me. He must have known I was so malleable, and I made it so easy for him.”

Cassandra frowned. “I find that difficult to believe. When I look at you, I see a headstrong woman.”

“You do?” Linea said.

“And when I look deeper,” Cassandra said, smiling at the course her own words took, “I see your pride. Your joy. Your beauty _._ ”

Linea stared back at her, broad smile on her face.

“You’re not even joking, are you?”

“I wouldn’t know how to,” Cassandra said, and her heartbeat picked up as Linea stepped closer, the abundance of freckles within reach for Cassandra to touch. She would not deny herself that opportunity, so she brought her hands up to Linea’s face, tracing her cheeks with her thumbs. Linea’s hands were on her arms, pulling her in, and Cassandra muffled her gasp with her own mouth.

When they parted, Linea looked up at her with renewed freedom. 

“I don’t know what lies ahead of me, but I do know I would like you to be part of my life more frequently, and not just because of unfortunate happenstances.”

Cassandra smiled, pressing her forehead against Linea’s.

“I think that could be arranged.”

* * *

“Cassandra, please, you have been kissing that same spot for the past five minutes.”

Reluctantly, Cassandra moved on from the thoroughly kissed birthmark on Linea’s shoulder. She followed the rays of light that came in through the curtains and which shaped a blindingly white trail on Linea’s bare back and the bed sheets. At the nape of Linea’s neck, her now short cropped hair tickled Cassandra’s mouth.

“I’m going to miss you,” Linea said, covering Cassandra’s hand with her own and guiding it to her breasts, which, as Cassandra had figured out quite quickly in their relationship, were as soft and fun to play with as she had imagined.

Cassandra was set to sail for Kirkwall in the afternoon, and they were spending one of precious few moments together. Over the past year they had met up less often than they would have wanted, and never longer than a few days. But every single one of their rendezvous had been laced with joy and passion, and their partings had been more emotionally fraught than Cassandra could have predicted. It felt right to love Linea, and having lept into this exhilarating romantic adventure together, and support her in her endeavors to build up a new future.

“I will try to write to you,” Linea promised. She turned around, moving languidly, closing one eye against the light and hooking her leg around Cassandra’s hip. Cassandra caressed the outline of her soft waist and dimpled thighs. By now, Cassandra knew exactly what Linea liked, wanted, and needed. 

Linea sucked in a sharp breath as Cassandra brought her hand between her legs, pressing her palm against the thick brown curls there.

“Yes, love,” she murmured, covering Cassandra’s hand with her own and helping Cassandra’s fingers inside her.

Later, resting together in a bathtub that was not designed for two people, Linea leaned back against Cassandra’s chest.

“Perhaps we should get married,” Linea said. “Adopt five cats and retire to a cabin in the woods.”

Cassandra snorted.

“You know how much we would hate that life.”

Linea grinned. “We’d _loathe_ it. Although it would be fun to tell our twenty grandchildren about our adventures.”

“ _Twenty_?”

“Come on, live a little.” Linea half-turned around, made difficult by the size of the bath and splashing soap suds over the edge of the tub. “If you keep sitting there slack-jawed thinking about twenty grandchildren, you will miss your boat.”

Cassandra leaned back and groaned. “Right. It’s time to get ready.”

She stood up, dripping from head to toe. Linea’s eyes slid over her body, lingering on a scar or birthmark here and there. Cassandra tried to ignore her, but she couldn’t prevent her thighs from twitching under her scrutiny. She stepped out of the bath, reaching for a towel and readying herself for her trip.

There were duties to be fulfilled, and Cassandra did not mind being away from Linea. Even with days of travel in between them, it did not diminish the tenderness she felt for her. At the end of the line, Linea would be waiting for her, and Cassandra was glad she had someone to return to. Whatever the future would bring, they would face it together as they had before.


End file.
